How to peel and eat a crawfish
I was so impressed with Shucker Paddy’s skill and expertise that I followed him to his next venue, the annual Seafood Expo in Boston. This is a vertical show where you can see not only the finest in fish and seafood products but the specialized equipment used to process fish on shipboard, the refrigerated trucks to take them to market, even the trays used in takeout sushi places. But most of all, lots of fabulous seafood.
These giant mudbugs made the effort worthwhile.
Live and prepared uni at Panagea booth
Panagea, a major supplier to our friends at Fin Your Fishmonger, was there with more oysters that I’ve ever seen in one place as well as uni. There was a lot of oyster tasting available, giving one the opportunity to compare by region. They do seem to get milder as one moves south into warmer waters, just as Shucker Paddy had suggested. Several Virginia and Carolina oyster farmers apologized for the lack of salty taste; there’s been so much rain this year there is an unusually low salt content in the water.
Giant lobster tails
Another exhibit featured the biggest lobster tails I’ve ever seen, well over a foot long. Many countries and regions sponsored pavilions for their exhibitors, like a Japanese area where one could sample fresh cut sashimi and compare fresh grated wasabi to the more familiar dried wasabi/horseradish blend. Some touted their commitment to sustainable fishing and farming, while others apparently could care less as long as the product is big and delicious. (I checked the exhibitor application form and there is no requirement to commit to ethically or legally caught product.)
Wasabi sampling. The horseradish/fresh wasabi blend (lower left) actually packed the most bite.
My only disappointment may have been the event I came to see, the oyster shucking competition. Shucker Paddy was the MC, not a contestant, and the shucking happened on a stage where we couldn’t see the shuckers at work. There were perhaps 20 competitors, but none came close to Paddy’s record of 39 oysters in a minute.
The most innovative product I saw at the show. Trident Protein Noodles are made with 58% pollock along with tapioca starch. Coming soon to a supermarket near you.
Now if they had only added Joey Chestnut to the oyster shucking competition… as a timed oyster eating competition… that would have been interesting.
Hah! Chuck, I would love to take on Joey Chestnut in that competition. I believe I could give him a run for his money. The only time I have been exposed to AYCE oysters was at a place in Florida where I polished off four dozen before they mysteriously ran out.